Greenpop Reforest Fest 2013: Help rebuild the ancient Platbos forest

We all know that planting more trees is good for the environment (C02 in, oxygen out, you know the drill), but until fairly recently I think most people saw it as a duty, something to do because you should, not because it was fun, let alone cool.

Then Greenpop came along, an amazing organisation which has made tree-planting into something fun and interactive for even the least green-thumbed of folks. Over the past two years, they have planted almost 18,000 trees in over 230 locations – and they’re just getting started.

This year, for the third time, Greenpop will be hosting The Reforest Fest in Platbos forest. The 2013 event will be in two parts, a Family Fest (10,11,12 May 2013) and a Friends Fest (17,18,19 May 2013), with the aim of planting 2,000 trees during each one (4,000 in all).

A great selection of live musical bands and acts will keep festival-goers entertained whilst they’re planting, and a variety of fun activities is lined up for the times in between (forest walks, yoga, slacklining and more).

About Platbos

The ancient Platbos forest where the Reforest Fest takes place is situated near Gansbaai in the Overberg region, 1½ hours drive from Cape Town. Platbos, a relic forest with trees of over 1000 years of age, forms part of one of the rare and endangered ecosystems of the Western Cape and has a unique mix of indigenous trees from coastal and mountainous regions – Afromontane tree species are combined with coastal forest tree species – creating a unique ecosystem of intense biodiversity. The forest supports not only a diverse plant life but also an animal one, with species such as the bushbuck and endangered leopard toad making the forest their home. To see the forest on the map, click on this maplink: http://g.co/maps/86p7f or read more about the ancient Platbos forest here: http://www.platbos.co.za/.

I haven’t been to this festival yet, but it certainly sounds both fun and magical, whilst having a strong practical purpose as well!

Ticket prices and specials:
Tickets for the Reforest Fest are R550 (R350 for children under 12). This includes the music festival and camping as well as all delicious meals, all tree-planting logistics and fun activities such as yoga and slack-lining. For bookings of 6 or more the cheapest ticket will be free. Tickets for the festivals are limited as it is an intimate affair – bookings can be made by filling in this online form.

And if you can’t buy a ticket, people are encouraged to raise Trees for Tickets by setting up an activist portal on GivenGain and raising 10 trees for their ticket. For more information about this, email tickets@greenpop.org.

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Lucky Friday the 13th… and if it’s anywhere near as propitious as this crazy (sneakily winter-like) weather, I’d be tempted to stay right at home. But, when there are markets to be explored, events to be enjoyed and expeditions to be embarked upon, there’s no way I can resist heading out into the great outdoors.